Last



Apr 23, i929., E. E. WHNKLEY LAST Filed July 22, 1927 Patented Apr. v23, 1929.

. UNITED STATES PATENT. oFFicE. i

ERASTUS E. WINKLEY, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MA- CHINERY CORPORATION, OF IPATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

LAST.

Application led July 22,

This invention relates to lasts and particnlarly to lasts shapedl to facilitate the desired formatiolf the bottoms of shoes in the laying and leveling operations.

' is a welt shoe, will be brought into contact with the upper and the welt crease closed.

Another object of the invention is to provide .a last such that filling material at the forepart may be substantially dispensed with, only a very thin filler, if any, being required, and such that the inner surface of the' sole may be given a conformation better adapted :to the shape of the foot.

With these objects in view,'one feature of the invention consists in a last the shank portion of which has a surface to support the shank portion of the insole, which preferably has the usual transverse and longitudinal .curvature but which, outside of the area covered by the insole at each side thereof, affords no support for the upper, the surface dropping away abruptly atthe'edge of the insole and meetin'o' the usual contour of the sides of the shank of the last along a line disposed outwardly beyond the line of the ed e of the outsole and welt, if the shoe is a we t shoe. The

pressure of an inclined leveling roll or otherA laying or leveling instrument upon the margin ofthe outsole laid upon the last of the present' invention can therefore bend the sole farther than it can when the last is of the usual construction because the ortion of the upper against which the margin of the sole is pressed in unsupported by the last. Als illustrated, a rebate is formed inthe last along the shank portion and outwardly beyond the portion covered by the insole.

Another feature of the invention consists in a last the margin of the forepart of which is inclined upwardly and outwardly, regarding the last in the normal position of the foot; that is, the mai' is` inclined outwardly and toward the ody of the last and is substantially coextensive with that portion.

of the insole which lies outwardly of the inner edge of the inseam. In making ashoe on such a last, the inseam and margin of the forepart 1927. 'semina 207,694.

of the insole are made to occupy the spacey provided by the inclination of the marginal surface of the last bottom, and the area outlined bythe insole rib requires little orfno filler to bringits surface flush with the inseam and welt and parallel to the inner surface of the outsole. y

In modern shoemaking it is frequently desired that the outsole be transversely fiat and that the surface of the insole on which the central portion of the forepart of the foot rests be also flat. Accordingly, as illus- 't1ated, the areaof the fore art of the last within the inclined margina portion is fiat transversely, the inclined margin taking care of the eXtra thickness of the shoe matel rials in the vicinity of the inseam and allowing the welt and the top of the sewing lip to lie transversely in a straight line corresponding to the posit1on the inner face of the outthe acti-on of a leveling roll on the shank portion of the shoe; and

Figs. 4 and 5 are views, similar respectively to Figs. 2 and 3, of a shoe and lastof the usual construction.

'In Fig. 1 is shown a last having the usual construction in its body and heel-seat portions. From the heel-breast line 10 to the ball. linev 12 thebottom of the shank portion 14 of the last is transversely and longitudinally curved, as usual, throughout the area covered by the insole, that is, between the lines 16 and r 18, From these lines outwardly, however,

the last is cut away or rebated, the surfaceI of the cut-away portion forming a reentrant angle the outer side of which merges into the substantially perpendicularly to the portion 14 and then extends outwardly substantially parallel to the insole but spaced therefrom by the height of the perpendicular portion until it merges into the side surface ofthe last, a reentrant angle being formed along the line 24 between the perpendicular portion and the outwardly extending portion and the width of the perpendicular portion and the outwardly extending portion becoming less and less from the central portion of the shank toward the breast line 10 and toward the ball line 12. It will be noted that the reentrant angle or groove formed bythe perpendicular portion and the outwardly extended portion is formed in that portion of the last which is normally bridged by the marginal portion of the lasted upper in extending from the side of the last over the feather of the insole, as illustrated at the left of Fig. 5 and that this formation of the last does not affect the function of the last in determining the shape of the v lasted upper, the reentrant angle or groove being located inwardly of the last bottomA with respect to the surfaces of the last which impart shape to the shank portion of the upper. 'lhe rebate or space provided by forming the shank portion of the last in the inanner described is bridged by the lasted upper and lining 25, as shown at the left of Fig. 3, and enables the pressure of alayingor leveling implement such as a roll 26, as shown at the right of Fig. 3, to force the upper into this space as it acts to bend the margin of the sole and the welt toward the last. Thus, resistance to such bending of the sole, as presented by the usual last SFig) is removed and the margin of the so e may be bent into the rebate beyond the position it is desired that it shall assume in the `finished shoe, with the result that'the sole will remain sufficiently bent to cause the welt to remain permanently in engagement with the upper with the welt crease closed.

The central portion 30 of the forepart of the last is transversely fiat and may, asdemanded by some styles of modern shoes, be longitudinally flat also. The area of the projection of the upper-shaping surface of the forepart upon the plane of the last bottom is substantially equal to the area of the bottom of the forepart. The margin 32 of the last bottom outside of the flat area 30 is sloped or inclined outwardly and toward the body of the last; that is, the margin of the bottom of the forepart from one end of the ball line about the forepart to the other end of the ball line is inclined heightwise of the last away from the plane of the central portion, the heightwise displacement of the margin at the edge of the last being substantially less than the widthwise extent of the inclined margin. At the ball line the ends of the inclined margin merge into the surface of the shank portion 14 Without definite lines of demarcation. The

width and inclination of the margin of thelast are so proportioned with respect to the insole being used that the inclined margin is substantially coextensive with that portion of the insole which lies outwardly of the inner edge 4of the inseam; therefore, enough extra space between the last bottom and the outsole is provided to accommodate the inseam after the inseam trimming operation, that is, space to receive the rib of the insole, the edge of the lasted upper and the margin of the welt held together by the stitches 34. This construction obviates the necessity of using any substantial amount of filling material to prepare the shoe bottom for the reception of an outsole 36, as shown in Fig. 2. In this View a very thin filler 38 is shown, but it is to be understood that by slightly increasing the heightwise inclination or widthwise extent, or both, of the margin 32, the filler 38 may be dispensed with entirely. The conditions obtaining in the use of a last embodying the present invention are clearly' illustrated in Fig. 2, and, in contrast to this, Fig. 4 shows the conditions of manufacture of a shoe on a last of usual construction in which a relatively large amount of filling material is necessary to prepare the shoe bottom for the reception of an outsole. It is to be understood, of course, that a thick layer of fillen is objectionable as it is apt, under pressure of the foot, to becomey displaced and hunched up, causing discomfort to the wearer; also that a heavy filler detracts from the lightness and flexibility of the shoe and is otherwise objectionable. The raising of the margin of the insole of 'a shoe made on the last of the present invention is an advantage, as the insole then conforms more closely to the contour of the foot and prevents sidewise slippingof the foot and ,consequent distortion of the-shoe upper and loss of the shapeliness imparted to it in the lasting operation.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters 'Patent of the United States is:

1. A last having an angular rebate along the shank portion of sufficient depth to permit bending of the margin of the shank portion of the outsole of a shoe on the last to,

or beyond the plane of, the inner surface offormed with a reentrant angle o, substantial depth into which the margin of the outsole and upper of a shoe on the last may be forced by-a. leveling instrument to form a. tight iso joint between the upper and the bottoming materials.

4. A last having a reentrant angular rebate of substantial depth along the shank portion to permit bending of the margin of the outsole of a shoe on the last toward the inner surface of the insole, said rebate narrowing toward. and disappearing at the ball line and narrowing toward and disappearing at a point slightly beyond the breast line.

5. A last for shoes having the shank portion at each side of the area covered by the insole of a shoe onthe last and within the area bridged by marginal portions of the lasted upper extending from the side of the last over the feather of the insole formed as a reentrant angle at least as deep as the thickness of the feather' of the insole.

6. A last for shoes having at each side of the shank portion beyond the area covered by the insole of a shoe on the last a reentrant groove of suiiciont depth to prevent opposition by the last to shank forming pressure applied to the margin of the outsole of the shoe. v v 7. A last for Awelt shoes having the part of its shank portion covered by the insole of a shoe on the last of the usual transverse and longitudinal curvature, the portion of the shank `portion only of the last beyond'theedges of the insole being formed with an angular rebate to permit bending toward the last of the shank portions of the sole and welt,

which project beyond the edges of the insole.

8. A last having the shank portions only of the surface of the last' outside of the edges of the insole of a shoe on the last formed to present a wall of substantial height perpendicular to the plane of the insole and an outwardly extending surface parallel to the insole and spaced therefromby the height of said wall heightwise of and toward the body of the last.

,9. A last for welt shoes having the margin of its forepart beveled to provide a space to be occupied by the inseam so that an outsole can be applied in a fiat condition and substantially Without the use of filling material and having the shank portion at each side of the area covered by the insolecut away to provide a space into which the lmargins of the outsole and welt may be bent to form a close shank.

10. A last for welt shoes having the margin of its forepart inclined outwardly and toward thevbody of the last and having the shank portion at each side of the area covered by the insole of a shoe on the last cutaway to facilitate the formation of a close shank.

11. A last for welt shoes having the margin of its forepart only inclined outwardly and toward the body of the last, the Widthwise extent of. said inclined margin` being greater than'the heightwise displacement of its outer edge, vsaid inclined margin being substantially co-cxtensive with that portion of the insole which lies outwardly of vthe inner edge of the inseam.

12. A last for welt slices having the interior of its forepart transversely flat and the margin of its forepart inclined outwardly and toward the body of the last, the extent of the inclined margin heilig sufficiently wide to underlie the inseam of a shoe upon the last and having at each side of the shank portion beyond the area covered by the insole of the shoe on the last a reentrant space of suiicient depth to permit the formation of a close shank by application of pressure to the margins of the outsole andv Welt to force them into the space.

13. A last for shoes havingthe area of the projection of the upper-shaping surface of vthe forepart upon the plane of the last bottom substantially equal to the area of the bottom of the forepartand having a groove of substantial depth along the shank portion at each side of the last located outwardly with respect to the area of the last bottom'covered by the shank portion of the insole and inwardly with respect to the surfaces of the last which 'imparts its shape tothe shank portion of the upper, said groove narrowing toward the ball line of the last and permitting the margins of the outsole to 'be forced'- toward lthe last without opposition bythe last to facilitate the formation of a close shank.

In testimony. whereof I have signedv my naine to this specification.

ERAsTUs E. WINKLEY.- 

